A Fairy Tale
by Dr. Huff-Puff
Summary: Chapter 13 is up! Tara is lost and no one can find her.
1. Chapter 1

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of "The 10th kingdom" characters. All the other characters that you see in the story are not real people.  
  
This story take place after 27 years of the original one. I mean "The 10th kingdom" story. Oh, you know what I mean. Anyway, I'd really like to get reviews. So, after you read, please remember to submit a review. Thank you.  
  
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A Fairy Tale by Dr. Huff-Puff  
  
CHAPTER ONE  
  
Tara was at the clinic as usual. After finishing a work with a patient, she went to the internet club. This time, she had so much work to do there. Tons of emails that she had to reply. She went home at 12:30. It was dark, and there wasn't too many people outside. Everytime she went home late, she worried about being followed by a stranger. But that didn't bother her at all. She's always careful. When she reached her apartment, she felt that someone was watching her. She turned around, but there was no one there. She opened the door using her key, and entered. Her parents were already asleep. Before she could close the door, someone put his hand on it, and pushed it a little. Tara opened the door and looked out to see who was it. It was a girl, wearing a long, thick coat. Her face skin was pale, and she was shaking.  
  
"May I help you?" Tara asked.  
  
"Miss, please help me. I need to hide. They are following me and they want to kill me. I'm lost here."  
  
She let her in. And without saying a word, she offered her to come in. Tara locked the door, and took the girl to her room.  
  
"Who are you?" Tara asked.  
  
"My name is Crystal." she said in a shaky voice, and she started to cry.  
  
"Hey calm down. You'll be safe here. I promise." She put her arm around the girl's shoulder, and tried to calm her. "Well, untill everyone wakes up, I guess."  
  
"You're the only one who can see or hear me."  
  
Tara was shocked. "What do you mean? You're not a ghost or something, are you? And ghosts don't exist as much as I know."  
  
"I'm not a ghost. I'm a fairy." she took off her coat, and spread her wings. They were shining in different colors of the rainbow, and sparkling like a crystal.  
  
"Oh. My. God. Am I dreaming or something?"  
  
"You're not dreaming. I am lost in this world. And you're the only one who felt me presence."  
  
Tara rememberd that she felt that someone was behind her before she opened the door of her apartment. "You mean no one can see you? Only me?" The girl nodded. "But who's following you?"  
  
"Trolls."  
  
"Trolls are only in films or cartoons. They don't exist!" Tara thought for a moment. "Wait. Fairies don't exist either. But if I'm talking to you, that means that there are trolls around! Shit!"  
  
"Don't let them find me please."  
  
Beofre Tara could respond, she heard the door knock. "Some one is getting crazy in the middle of the night." she said and got up to go to the door.  
  
"Wait! It's them! They'll kill us both." Crystal said, as tears filled her eyes.  
  
"Go to the bathroom, it's at the end of the corridor. Close the door, and turn on the shower. I'll handle them." Tara said and headed to the door. Crystal went to the bathroom, and did as Tara told her. Tara opened the door, and saw three of the most ugly persons she ever saw in her life.  
  
"May I help you?" she said, without opening the door to the end.  
  
"We're searching for a fairy girl. We know that she's here." One of them said. He was taller than the other two.   
  
"Fairy? They don't exist. Do they?"  
  
"They do." another said, this time the female. "Now give her to us, or we'll kill you!" she took out her knife and pointed it to Tara.  
  
"Hey, calm down. I promise to tell you about her when I see her. Maybe you got here before she did."  
  
The three thought about what Tara said. They whispered to eachother discussing Tara's offer. Tara stared at them, and waited for their next move.  
  
"Alright. But if you lie to us. We know where you live. And you know what will happen to you." The tall guy said.  
  
"OK. Come back in three days. She might be here until then. If she comes, I'll let her stay here until you come."  
  
"No! We're comming tomorrow morning." the other guys said.  
  
"What would you want to waist your time? You can have fun in the city, and after three days you can get back to your work. I do that all the time."  
  
The trolls discussed the offer once again, and decided to agree. "Alright. We'll be back in three days. And don't even thing about running away!" the female said, pointing her knife at Tara again.  
  
"I always keep my word." tara said, with a fake smile on her face.  
  
The trolls left the building, and Tara closed the door and locked it.  
  
"That was close." she said to her self and went to the bathroom. She knocked the door. "Crystal, you can come out now. They're gone."  
  
Crystal opened the door, and got out. She hugged Tara tightly. "Oh thank you so much!"  
  
"It's nothing. By the way, my name is Tara."  
  
Crystla smiled at her. "Nice to meet you Tara."  
  
"Nice to meet you too." she replied smiling. "Let's go back to my room, or mom and dad might wake up and think that I'm talking to myself."  
  
The fairy looked at her with a lifted eyebrow. "Your parents?"  
  
"Yeah, I live with them"  
  
"You're not living with your parents."  
  
"Of course I am, there's their room." Tara pointed to a door next to her room door.  
  
"I'm sorry, but I think I'm a little confused." Crystal said.  
  
Tara took her back to her room. "Have a seat." she pointed to a chair that was near the window. But Crystal sat on the bed.  
  
"I don't want to sit near the window. They might see me from outside. But what did you tell them?"  
  
Tara took off her clothes and changed into her pajamas. "I told them that you're not here yet, and that they came too early. I also said that they can come back to take you after three days."  
  
"What?! I thought you were going to help me!"  
  
"I am Crystal. I just said that so they wouldn't come back in the morning. Untill then, we can get you back to your home. I guess."  
  
"Oh, that's better to know. You scared me to death!"  
  
"Do fairies die?"  
  
"Only if they're not blessed by the fairy queen."  
  
"Wow. And are you blessed?"  
  
"I'm too young to be blessed. I'm only 23 years old."  
  
"At what age can you be blessed?"  
  
"One hundred."  
  
"Holly God! And you live that long?"  
  
"Yes. And we get blessed by our queen on our 100th birthday. But only if we deserve to be blessed."  
  
"How interesting. But where do you live?"  
  
"In the Seventh Kingdom."  
  
Tara's eyes and mouth opened wide in amazement. "Seventh Kingdom? Where the hell is that?"  
  
"It's one of the nine kingdoms. You never heard of them?"  
  
"No. But how did you get here?"  
  
"I ran through a mirror by accident, and the trolls followed me. I ended up here. I felt that you can see me, so I followed you."  
  
"Oh. And do you know the way back to the place where you came from?"  
  
"Only if I reach that little forest of yours. I can find the way back."  
  
"You mean Central Park. It's not a forest. Anyway, I'm really tired, let's get some sleep, and we'll go there in the morning."  
  
"Alright. Where can I sleep?"  
  
Tara looked around the room. There was no comfortable place to offer but her bed. "Hey you can sleep in my bed. It's big enough to make space for the two of us."  
  
"I don't want to bother."  
  
"No way. My friend comes and stays with me very often. So, i'm used to it." Tara smiled.  
  
"Alright. Thank you so much."  
  
They got into the bed, Tara gave Crystal a seperate pillow and cover. She turned off the light and soon, the fell asleep. 


	2. Chapter 2

****

CHAPTER TWO

David woke up early. He was always the last one to get up in the palace, and he always missed breakfast. He washed his face, changed his clothes and went to the dining room.

"Good morning father." He said and sat near the table.

"Good morning son. I see you're up early today."

"I just got up. I couldn't sleep." David said and yawned.

"Is there something wrong?"

"No. I just couldn't sleep. That's all. Where's everyone else?"

"They'll be here in any moment. Anthony is awake, as well as Wolf and Virginia."

"What about Amanda?"

"She's still in New York."

"Yeah, I forgot about that."

At that moment Wolf and Virginia came in.

"Good morning!" Wolf said and rushed to the table.

"Good morning Wolf." Wendell replied.

"David, you're awake early today." Virginia said.

"I couldn't sleep Auntie Virginia."

"Is dad awake?" Virginia asked.

"He is. He'll be here in any moment now." Wendell replied.

"Father, can I start eating? I need to go out as soon as possible." David said.

"Where are you going?" Wendell asked.

"I can't tell you father. I'm really sorry. It's a secret."

"Alright, you can eat." Wendell replied and that's when Tony came.

"Good morning everyone." He said and sat in his seat near the table.

"How did you sleep dad?" Virginia asked.

"I had better nights."

"What went wrong this time?" Wolf asked.

"I couldn't sleep. I kept having nightmares."

"It seems that last night was a hard one for the both of you." Wendell said, then he ordered the servants to serve breakfast.

"I'm famished!" Wolf said.

"Do you ever get satisfied?" Tony asked.

"Actually, no." Wolf replied.

They ate, and David was the first to finish. He stood and asked for permission to leave.

"May I leave now father?"

"Of course. Wherever you go, make sure that you get back at eight o'clock. Amanda is coming tonight."

"Alright. Excuse me all." He said and left the dining room.

When he was out in the palace gardens, he headed to a small path. He walked until he reached a little cemetery. There were three graves there. Two of them were Wendell's parents, and the third was his mother's. Queen Melanie. She died when David was fifteen, because of a sudden heart attack. No body knew that she was ill. She never complained of anything. Since then, David came to visit her grave every week. It's been twelve years since she died, but he kept visiting her. He talked about what he has done during that week, what did his father do. No one knew about David's visits. He kept it a secret. Only Amanda knew about it, and she never told anyone, not even her parents.

Amanda is Wolf and Virginia's daughter. She's 27 years old. She lives in New York, but every weekend she comes to visit her parents in the Fourth Kingdom. Today she was coming back.

David stayed at the cemetery all day. Whenever he came here, he always forgot about time. There was so much he wanted to tell his mother. It was getting dark, but he didn't notice. He was deep in thoughts, when someone put a hand on his shoulder. He quickly stood and turned back to see who was it.

"Hi Dave!"

"Amanda! How many times did I tell you not to scare me to death?"

"Couldn't help it. Sorry." Amanda smiled.

"It's good to see you again kid!" David hugged her.

"How many times do I have to tell you that I'm not a kid?" she asked.

"I don't remember honestly. But you're a kid for me."

"You silly!" she hugged him tight and kissed his cheek. "Are you finished here? Can we go back now?"

"Yes. And you remember where was I."

"Yeah, how can I forget? On the road, examining some new kinds of flowers."

"Good. Let's go now."

They walked back to the palace. When they were in, Wendell came to meet them. He was angry.

"David, didn't I ask you to be back at eight?"

"Yes father. You did. I apologize."

"I told you that Amanda is coming, but you don't even care about your cousin returning. Do you?"

"Father, I do care about her. And will you please stop treating me like a ten year old child?"

Amanda thought that this was the time she should leave them to argue together. She walked slowly and went to her room.

"Look what have you done." Wendell said and pointed to Amanda's direction. "She must be upset of your behavior."

"She isn't upset father. You're making a big problem out of this. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go to my room."

"Where have you been all day?"

"On the main road. I went to the forest too."

"Do you realize that it's dangerous there?"

"No." David replied dryly and went to his room.

Wendell couldn't say anything more. He just threw his hands up in the air and dropped them. "You're hopeless son. I'm sorry to say that." He said in a low voice.

David went to his room and slammed the door close. "I hate it when he treats me like a child." He said to himself. He sat near the opened window and stared at the sky. "Mother, if you can hear me, please help me change my life."

Then the door knocked. "I don't want to see anyone now." He said.

"Dave it's me. Amanda."

"Come in."

Amanda got inside and closed the door after her. "What was that all about?" she asked.

"You know that father still treats me like a child. I don't know what to do kid."

"I'm sure that he's concerned about something."

"I don't know. But that's not a way to be concerned. He's getting so much aggressive to me. Like he needs a simple reason to start an argument."

"We'll think of something to change that. Now, about why I was here."

"Yes?"

"I need your help."

"Sure, what is it?"

"It's mom's birthday after four days and I don't know what to give her. I didn't bring anything with me from New York."

"How can I help?"

"There are no shops around the palace. Can we go to a village or a town and buy something together?"

"With pleasure! I wanted to get out of the palace too! How about leaving tomorrow morning?"

"At noon. I don't want to get up early."

"Alright. I don't like getting up early either." He smiled.

"OK, see you in the morning. IF you wake up early."

"Sure." They hugged each other and Amanda went to her room.

David changed his clothes and wore his nightshirt and went to bed. He couldn't sleep at first, but after a couple of hours of turning around, he finally managed to fall asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

****

CHAPTER THREE

Tara took a day off. She spent the day with Crystal. She showed her the town, and they went to the Central Park trying to find the place where Crystal came from.

"Maybe you can see it only at night?" Tara asked.

"I don't know. What if I'm locked here forever? I would die!"

"No you won't." Tara put her arm around Crystal's shoulder. "We will find that place. I promise."

Crystal smiled to her. "You are a good person Tara. You're helping me without even knowing who I am."

"I know who you are. A fairy named Crystal, who needs my help to get home. What else should I know?" they sat under a tree in the park. "My parents always taught me to be honest with myself. If I see someone who needs help, I should help him with all that I can. If I can't help him, I should at least give him a hint about who would be able to help."

"That's so nice of you. And speaking of your parents. I want to tell you something."

"Sure, go ahead."

"Remember last night when I told you that I felt that you weren't living with your parents?"

"Yes. And you said that you're confused."

"Well, fairy's have the ability to recognize family members. And I don't think that those are you real parents."

Tara looked at her in a shock. "Crystal, how could you say something like that?"

"Tara, believe me, I don't mean any harm. I'm just saying what I felt yesterday. Why don't you ask them? I'll be more than happy to know that I'm wrong."

"OK. Let's go. We can get back here at night to find your way home."

"Alright."

The two girls went back to the apartment. Tara's parents were home. Her mother was preparing lunch for them. Of course they couldn't see Crystal, as she was invisible to them.

"Mom, dad I'm home!" Tara said as she entered. She closed the door and went to the kitchen.

"Hi honey. How was your day?" her mother said.

"Quite interesting. What do we have for lunch?"

"Nothing special. Just a soup and French fries."

"Good. I don't want to eat much."

"You must eat my dear. Look at you! You look like a tooth stick. You should eat as much as you can. That's healthy you know."

"Oh come on mom! You know that I can't eat that much. There's no place in my stomach!" she smiled and kissed her mother. "I'll go and see how dad is." Tara went to the living room. Her father was watching TV. "Dad?"

"Yes honey?" he got up and hugged her. "What is it? You look like you haven't seen me for years!"

"Of course! I didn't see you last night when I came back, not even this morning. When I went out both of you weren't home."

"Oh, I went to do some shopping with your mother."

"And you didn't tell me you were going out together? I wanted to come! It's been more than a year since the last time we got out together."

"We thought you were going to work today. That's why we didn't want to bother you."

"Oh dad, you would never bother me." She hugged him. Her mother came and called them to the kitchen.

Tara and her father went to the kitchen and sat near the table. Soon, her mother joined them. Tara looked at Crystal who was standing near the door. "I'll be right back." Tara said and got off the table. She went to her room with Crystal.

"Crystal, I'm sorry to leave you alone like that. You must be hungry."

"I'm not hungry Tara. I was just amazed by your behavior."

"What do you mean?"

"Your father said it. You acted like you haven't seen them for years."

"I know. I just.. I don't know Crystal. I don't know how to say that."

"Just ask them where are you from."

Tara went to the kitchen. She sat back in her place, and started to eat. She wasn't talking, and her parents knew that there was something behind her silence.

After finishing their meal, Tara helped her mother to clean the table and wash the dishes. Then, they went to the living room.

"Tara, is there something bothering you?" her mother asked.

"In fact mom, there is."

"What is it dear?" her father asked.

She looked at them for a moment, then asked, "Where am I from?" She didn't know what to say. Crystal suggested that question, and she didn't have any other choice but to ask it.

"What do you mean honey?" her mother was confused.

"I don't know mom. It's just that I get the feeling that I'm not…" she couldn't continue. She never had that feeling. She just said that to give a simple hint about what was her question about.

"Don't say that honey! You are our daughter." Her mother said, her eyes filling with tears.

Her father lowered his head. "Martha, you know that isn't true. Tara is a grown up young woman now. She has to know the truth."

"But Sam…"

"Tell her Martha, please."

"Mom what is going on? I am your daughter, right?" she knelt in front of her mother, her eyes filled with tears. "Mom, tell me that I am you daughter."

"You're not." Her mother said and cried. "We raised you, but we didn't give you life."

Tara looked at her in a shock. "But how? When? I don't remember any other parents. You are my parents!"

"Tara, my dear." Her father spoke. "We found you crying on the edge of the park. You were a few months old. Someone has left you to die there. Martha and I were going home from work, and we heard your cries. We followed the voice until we saw you. We brought you home, and called the police. They searched for your parents for more than a month. Then they came to take you to a foster house. We couldn't let you go, so we decided to adopt you."

"So, that means that my name is not Tara Anderson? I am not myself?"

"Your name is Tara. Only we don't know your real last name. Martha could you please bring her bracelet?"

Martha went to her room and came back with a small bracelet in her hand.

"Tara, this bracelet was on your hand when we found you." Her mother said. Tara took the bracelet and saw her name carved on it.

"This was mine?" she asked.

"Yes."

"But it's so small."

"You were about six or seven months old when we found you."

Tara wiped her tears and stood. "No matter what, you are my REAL parents! I only saw you since I was a kid. I don't know anyone else. Even if my real parents show up I will throw them out of the door, just like they left me in the park to die. I won't leave you. I love you both!" she said and hugged them.

"We love you too honey." Her parents said.

Crystal was looking at them. Her eyes were wet too. She saw the love that this family has to each other, and she felt guilty about telling Tara the truth. She went to Tara's room and sat on the bed.

After a few minutes Tara came in. She closed the door and sat next to Crystal on the bed.

"You were right. Sorry I didn't believe you." She said.

"I'm sorry that I caused you so much pain." Crystal replied.

"It was a pain to know that my real parents wanted my death, nothing more. Thanks for helping me to know about that."

Crystal looked at her and smiled. "Can we go and find the portal tonight?"

"Sure. But until then, let's go and do some shopping."

"Alright." Crystal smiled.

They went out together. They went to the mall, examined every shop in there and finally Tara bought her new shoes and a pair of jeans.

It was getting dark, and the girls decided to go home and after that go out to search for the portal.


	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER FOUR**

Amanda and David woke up early. After breakfast they went to their rooms and started getting ready for their trip. Virginia came to Amanda's room and she was amazed to see her packing.

"Amanda, are you going back? You just came yesterday!"

"No, mom. I'm going on a trip with Dave for a couple of days."

"Does Wendell know about this?"

"I don't know. Dave was supposed to tell him I guess."

"Obviously he didn't. I don't think it's a good idea to leave the palace without saying anything."

"I was going to tell you."

Then Wolf came in searching for Virginia. "Amanda did you see your mother any where? Virginia you're here! I was looking for you."

"What is it Wolf?"

"Looks like Wendell is going crazy about Dave's decision. Amanda, you knew about this?" he asked as he saw Amanda's bag.

"She was going with him Wolf." Virginia said.

"Huff-puff! You could've killed us both! Why didn't you tell us earlier?" Wolf asked.

"I was going to tell you this morning dad. I didn't have the time for it. Sorry."

"Alright, it's no time to argue about this now, we have to stop Wendell." Wolf said.

They all went to David's room. They heard Wendell screaming at him.

"Do you realize how dangerous it is to leave the palace without guards? You are the heir to the thrown, and you must act like one!"

"Father, I know how to act! If being the heir to the thrown means that I have to be imprisoned in the palace to the end of my life, then I don't want it!"

Amanda, Virginia and Wolf entered the room.

"What on earth is going on here?" Virginia asked. "Wendell, will you calm down please?" she put her hand on his shoulder.

"Virginia, he wants to go on a trip! And without any guards with him!"

"Amanda is going with him too." Virginia added.

"What? Amanda, are you out of your mind? It's dangerous!"

"Uncle Wendell, New York is much more dangerous than here. And I live there all alone."

"I can't understand these two. Wolf, say something!" Wendell said.

"I say we let them go. They are going to use a carriage, so the driver can be the guard that we are sending with them."

"That's what I've been trying to explain to him uncle Wolf. But he never listens." David said.

"Alright, I'll arrange the carriage and the guard." Wendell said and left the room.

"Uncle Wolf, could you please tell him to treat me like a grown up? He still thinks that I'm a ten year old!"

"I'll do my best son. Don't worry."

David continued to pack his bag. Amanda went to her room to finish her packing as well. Wolf and Virginia went to see Wendell.

He was sitting in his office, angry about his son's sudden decision.

"Wendell?" Wolf called before he entered the room. Virginia followed him.

"Why can't I control him?" Wendell asked. He stood and went to stare out of the window. "I've given him everything. But he still doesn't act like a prince." He turned to Wolf and Virginia. "What did I do wrong?"

"Wendell, you didn't do anything wrong by raising him. It's just that you need to treat him as a grown up now." Virginia said.

"He told you to say that didn't he?"

"No Wendell. I'm saying what I saw. You acted like he was a kid who doesn't know what to do."

"Let him go Wendie. He's a man now." Wolf said.

"He's 27 but he isn't showing any interest in the princesses of any of the kingdoms. How is he going to keep The House of White family line alive?"

"Is that all you're thinking about? Maybe he hasn't found the girl that he loves." Virginia said. "And I know that all the marriages in the White family was built on love. You can't force him to get married."

"I wouldn't even think about that Virginia. If I was going to force him to get married, I would've done that long time ago. I never told him that I want to see him getting married either. I don't want him to get the thought that I want to rush him to marriage."

"Alright then. Leave him to do everything that he wants and you'll see, he'll come to you to ask for advice." Wolf said.

Wendell looked out of the window. He saw that David and Amanda were putting their bags in the carriage. "I guess you're right Wolf. They're getting ready to leave. I think we should go out there."

"Leaving? Already? Huff-puff! I must see Amanda first!" Wolf said and rushed out of the office. Wendell and Virginia followed him.

When they reached the courtyard Amanda and David stood near the carriage.

"We're leaving now." David said.

"Oh huff-puff! My creamy cub, I'll miss you." Wolf said and hugged Amanda.

"Dad, I'm not a cub anymore, and I'll be back in a few days."

"I'll miss you anyway." He kissed her forehead.

"I'll take care of her uncle Wolf. Don't worry."

"I'm sure you will son." Wolf hugged David too.

Virginia and Amanda whispered to each other on a side. Wendell stood in front of his son.

"I want you to take care of your cousin. And yourself." Wendell said in a concerned voice.

"I will father. You'll see that you can rely on me."

"I hope so." Wendell said and he gave David a hug. "Return soon and unharmed."

"We will." David said. He and Amanda sat in the carriage, and waved good bye to their parents.

"Finally were out of there!" Amanda said happily.

"Yeah. I'm glad we managed to keep our destination a secret." David replied.

"But we have a guard with us." She said and pointed to the direction of the driver from inside the carriage.

"Well, he can't send them a message, and he wouldn't leave us alone to go back and give a report about where are we staying. So, he won't tell them."

"But where are we going anyway?"

"I don't know. How about going through the forest, and head to Little Lamb Village?"

"No way! I hate that place. They have too many sheep. I could cause a problem."

"So what? You're with the prince."

"But we won't stay the night there OK? We'll check their shops and leave the village as soon as we can. We can camp outside of the village."

"Alright." David took his head out of the window and told the driver to go through the forest and head to Little Lamb Village.


	5. Chapter 5

****

CHAPTER FIVE

It was getting dark. Tara and Crystal went home after doing some shopping at the mall. As they reached the building, Tara could sense that that there was something wrong. They got out of the elevator and as they reached the apartment, they noticed that the door was opened.

"Crystal, I don't feel good about this. But you better stay invisible to everyone." Tara whispered.

"The trolls were here Tara. Look at the pink dust on the floor."

"What's that?" Tara asked as they went through the corridor.

"Troll dust. If it hits anyone, that person falls into sleep."

"Where are mom and dad? Mom? Dad? Are you there?" She went to their room, but they weren't there. "Crystal, go and look in the kitchen. I'll look in the living room."

"Alright."

Tara went to the living room, and saw that everything was in a mess. The table was turned to a side; the TV was smashed into pieces. Nothing was in the same shape. Then she heard crystal screaming from the kitchen. Tara ran to the kitchen and her mouth dropped open at the sight in front of her. The whole kitchen was covered with blood. Her parents were on the ground, surrounded with a pool of blood. It was an awful scene. Tara stood there not knowing what to do, or what to say. She started to cry. Crystal came near her and hugged her as she cried with her.

"They'll pay for this." Tara said. She was full of anger and sadness in the same time.

Crystal noticed a piece of paper hanging from the door by a little knife. "Tara, look at this." She said.

Tara took the paper and read: 

This was a warning. We will come in two days.

If the girl is not with you, you're gonna be next.

Trolls

"I'll get them for that!" Tara went and called the police.

"Tara what will they do? They can't catch the trolls."

"I don't know what I'm doing!" she said and went into the kitchen again. She knelt near her mother's body, keeping a distance from the blood pool that surrounded her. "I'm sorry I left you alone mom. I didn't know this was gonna happen. I'm sorry." She said as she cried.

After a few minutes the police came in. One of them helped Tara to get up and took her out of the kitchen. Another one came to talk to her as the rest of them did their work.

"Miss, I'm detective Jackson." The man said. Tara just stared at him. Her eyes were emotionless. "Miss, can you tell me your name?" he asked.

"Tara." She said.

"OK Tara, I know that it's hard for you, but can you tell me what happened?"

Tara gave him the note that she found on the door. "This was on the kitchen door."

The detective read the note and was amazed by the signature. "Trolls? Tara, did you see anyone here? Don't be afraid to tell me everything you know."

"I went to the mall, and I got back a few minutes ago. The door was opened, and I didn't hear mom and dad's voices anywhere. I searched in their room, then the living room, then the kitchen. They were…" she couldn't continue as she started to cry.

"We'll find them." Detective Johnson said and put his hand on her shoulder.

"You can't find them. No one can!"

Crystal sat next to her. She was trying to calm her. She knew that the detective would not see or hear her, so she talked to Tara.

"Tara, calm down now. We will find them. I'll help you."

Tara looked at her. "How?" she asked. The detective thought that she was asking him. So he replied.

"We will start an investigation. Do you have a place to spend the night?"

Tara looked at him, then looked at Crystal.

"Tell him yes. We'll go and find the portal. I'll take you to my world. The trolls are there, I'm sure of it." Crystal said.

Tara turned to the detective. "Yes. I have a place to stay. Can I go now?"

"It would be better that way Tara."

"What about mom and dad?"

"We'll take care of them."

Tara got up, and took a little bag. She put some clothes in it, and some stuff that she might need. "I'm going." She said.

"Alright, come to the police station tomorrow. You need to answer a couple of questions there, OK?"

Tara just nodded and left. She stood in the corridor for a moment and stared at the direction of the kitchen. She went out of the apartment and Crystal followed her. They walked to the park.

"Where should we search?" she asked, dryly.

"I don't know. It's a blue shimmering surface." Crystal replied.

"Are you sure that we'll find them there?"

"They live there, Tara."

They walked around the park for a while, then decided to go through it.

"I can't see any blue stuff around here." Tara said with an angry voice.

"There it is!" Crystal said.

"Where?"

"There on the left. Do you see that blue light?"

"Yes. Let's go." Tara said, and they ran toward the light and saw the portal.

"Hold my hand." Crystal said.

"Where will it lead us?"

"A forest. Don't be afraid, I can protect us over there."

"OK. Here goes nothing." Tara held Crystal's hand and as soon as she walked through the portal, she closed her eyes. She couldn't feel anything for a few seconds. But when they were there she hit her head on the ground.

"Aww!"

"Sorry! I forgot to tell you how to land."

"It's OK. As long as I'm still alive." She got up and looked around her. It was dark, but Crystal was shining. "Crystal, you're sparkling!" she said in amazement.

"Yes. I have my powers restored now."

"And where are we now?"

"Somewhere in the Forth Kingdom. I don't know how the trolls managed to get here, and this mirror is supposed to be at the palace." She turned off the mirror, and with a wave of her hand the mirror turned into a small one that would fit in a pocket.

"Put this in you bag. And be careful not to break it. We don't want seven years of bad luck surrounding you."

"Seven years of bad luck? Am I in a fairy tale or something?"

"You're in the world of the fairy tales."

Tara shook her head and decided not to ask anymore questions about this place. "Where should we go now?" she asked.

"Let's walk in that direction. Maybe we could meet someone on the way." Crystal pointed to the direction of a little path through the forest, and they walked that way.


	6. Chapter 6

****

CHAPTER SIX

David and Amanda reached Little Lamb Village. Amanda was nervous all the time. She hated farmers. They went to some of the little shops in the village but couldn't find anything interesting.

"Are you hungry?" David asked.

"You know I am. But I'm scared to eat here."

"Don't be. We can go to the bar and have something to eat."

"Or we can order it and eat it in the carriage."  
"Sounds better." David said and they went to the Baa-Baa Bar.

As they entered, the people inside greeted them. They recognized Prince David, but didn't know who was the girl with him. Amanda didn't go out of the palace very often. And wherever she went, she stayed in the carriage and the driver brought her what she wanted. She never liked the idea of being a daughter of a famous person. Not to mention the daughter of the two of the four who saved the Nine Kingdoms.

"Let's make this quick." She said to David in a low voice.

As they reached the bartender, who was a young boy, David ordered some food that is suitable to be taken with them. Of course, the young bartender offered sandwiches.

"Make it bacon sandwiches please." Amanda said.

"Alright Miss." The young boy replied. After a few minutes he gave them a bag full of sandwiches and some fruit, that David asked for. He paid the boy and they went out.

"Let's get to the carriage or I'll have to run after those fluffy sheep!" Amanda said as she looked at the sheep that were running around in the village.

"Calm down kid! You don't want to make a scene, don't you?"

"Let's get out of here!"

They went to the carriage. The driver was waiting for them. He opened the door and helped Amanda to get in. David followed her, and the driver closed the door.

"Where to Your Highness?" he asked.

"To the forest. We'll spend the night there."

"But Your Highness, it's dangerous."

"I know what's dangerous and what's not. Take us there." David said dryly.

"As you wish Your Highness." The driver bowed and went to his seat. He drove the carriage through the forest.

It was almost dark. Amanda was eating her share of the sandwiches and David ate some fruit.

"This is delicious!" Amanda said.

"When was the last time you ate today?"

"Breakfast."

"Me too, but I'm not _that_ hungry." He said as he stared at her way of eating.

"You don't know how it feels to be a wolf."

David smiled and continued his apple. "How about stopping here?" he asked.

"Good place." Amanda said without looking out.

David took his head out of the window and ordered the driver to stop. The carriage stopped and they got out.

"We need to put on a fire." David said.

"And I need to do some hunting!"

"Come on kid! You can't leave me alone!"

"You have the river to talk to. Besides, you're too slow to go hunting with."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah." She said and put her hands on her hips.

"Alright then, I'm coming with you." David said and ordered the driver to get some woods and put on a fire.

He and Amanda ran into the forest. Amanda was sniffing the air trying to find some rabbits. Those were her favorite. She never hunted any other animals. She left them for her dad to hunt.

"I smell them here." She whispered and pointed to a direction. "When they come out, try to catch at least one of them."

"Alright." David replied.

Amanda walked carefully to the place where she suspected to find rabbits, and as soon as she got near it, three rabbits jumped out of the place and ran. David chased one of them, and Amanda caught one as soon as it got out of it's hiding place. "Dave! I got one. You can leave them alone." She said. David came back, breathing heavily.

"I never thought that catching a little rabbit will be this hard." He said.

"It's an art. Not everyone can do it." She said with a smile.

They got back to the carriage. The driver was already sleeping near the fire.

"And father wanted to send him as a guard. He's already asleep!"

"Shhh. Can you hear that?" Amanda said. She turned to the direction of the voices.

"Foot steps." David said. "Someone's coming. Can you smell them?"

Amanda sniffed the air. "They're two. One is a human, but I can't recognize the other."

They looked at the direction of the voice and saw a sparkling person reaching them, with a human girl.

"Stay where you are, and identify yourself." David said in a loud, confident voice. The driver woke up and stood quickly.

Tara and Crystal stopped. "Crystal, what should we do now? I'm tired, and I can't run if those were some kind of criminals. If I walk another step I'll die." Tara said.

"Those aren't criminals. I don't know who they are, but they are honest people." Crystal said.

"Introduce yourself please." David called again.

"My name is Crystal. And this is Tara. We are lost." Crystal said.

"Where do you come from? How can we trust you?"

"I'm from the Seventh Kingdom, and Tara is from the Tenth. Can you help us please? Can we approach you? She's so tired to stand on her feet."

"Tenth? Kid, isn't that how New York is called over here?"

"Yes. Let them come near Dave." Amanda said.

"You can come." David told the girls.

Crystal held Tara by the shoulder as they walked. "Crystal, I can't go on much more. I feel dizzy." Tara said and collapsed.

"Tara!" Crystal hardly managed to keep Tara from falling. David ran to help her.

"I'll carry her. Go to the fire." He said. He carried Tara and put her on the ground near the fire. Amanda brought a blanket from the carriage and put it on Tara.

"What happened to her?" she asked and used a wet cloth to wipe the blood from Tara's head, that was caused by a scratch when she fell out of the mirror.

"How did you manage to go to the Tenth Kingdom? There's only one mirror and it belongs to the king!" David said.

"I fell through the mirror by accident while I was trying to escape from the trolls."

"Trolls? They're supposed to be in their kingdom!" David said. He was getting confused.

"I was on a visit to your kingdom, and on my way I saw them examining the mirror. They saw me and ran after me. They wanted to kill me. And while I was trying to avoid the troll dust, I stepped through the mirror by accident. And in the 10th kingdom, Tara was the only one who could sense my presence. So, I asked her to hide me."

"And how did you get back here?" Amanda asked.

"Tara hid me in her house, and the trolls came there. They told her to give me to them, but she said that she hasn't seen me anywhere. And asked them to come a few days later. She wanted to help me get back here before they get me." Crystal lowered her head. "And today, we went for shopping together. And when we were back to her house, it was in a mess. They were there, and they killed her parents. It was all my fault." She started to cry.

"Hey, it wasn't your fault." Amanda tried to calm her. "Everyone knows how trolls are."

"They know that here, not over there. If I didn't go there in the first place, non-of this would have happened. And now we both are lost. I don't know how to get back home, and she wants revenge for her parents, but I don't know how to help her. Although, I offered her to come here."

David and Amanda exchanged looks. They didn't know what to say. Suddenly, Tara started to move.

"Mom, dad?"

"Tara! Are you alright?" Crystal said and came near her.

Tara opened her eyes and saw Crystal by her side. "What happened?"

"You fainted." Crystal said.

Tara managed to sit. She looked around and saw three new faces. "Where are we? Who are these people? Can they see you?" she whispered.

"Yes they can. We are in the fourth kingdom. Don't you remember?" Crystal asked.

Tara thought for a moment, and remembered why she was there. Her eyes filled with tears.

"Everything will be fine." Amanda said and gave Tara a cup of water.

"Thanks." Tara said and took the cup. She drank the water slowly.

"How do you feel miss?" David asked.

"I think I'm fine."

"Good. I guess we all should have a sleep now, and we'll discuss everything in the morning." David said.

The driver got up and went to check on the horses. Amanda and David slept near each other; Crystal lay next to Tara. The driver came back and lay in the same place he was sleeping a while ago.


	7. Chapter 7

CHAPTER SEVEN  
  
Amanda was the first to wake up. She went for a hunt. David opened his eyes and noticed that Amanda was gone.  
  
"Suck an elf! She's gone again." He said and got up. "Where is she now?" He looked around, but she wasn't anywhere close to them.  
  
Tara was next to wake up. She sat in her place and looked around. "Where am I?" she asked to herself. But of course, David heard her.  
  
"In the fourth kingdom."  
  
"Oh, yeah. Right. Umm, good morning… I guess." Tara said.  
  
"Good morning miss." David replied.  
  
Tara stretched and yawned. "My body hurts like hell!"  
  
"You're not used to sleep on the ground?"  
  
"Nope."  
  
"Excuse me?"  
  
"I mean no. I've never slept on the ground." She said and got up. "I need to do some exercising. Is it dangerous around here?"  
  
"Not really. But being careful wouldn't hurt." David replied.  
  
"OK. I'll be right back." She said and ran away.  
  
Tara kept jogging through the forest. Soon enough, she was far from the camp. She stopped and started doing some exercises.  
  
"One, two, three…" she counted.  
  
Curious eyes were watching her from behind the bushes. Tara didn't notice them. She continued to work out.  
  
Suddenly, she heard some cracks. She turned around to see if there was anyone around, but couldn't see anyone.  
  
"Is someone there?" she called.  
  
Amanda came out of the bushes with five bunnies in her hands. Her hands, mouth and most of her clothes were covered with blood.  
  
"Oh… hi." Tara said. Confused by Amanda's look.  
  
"Morning. You know that you're so far from the camp, don't you?"  
  
"Yeah, I guess I can find the way back." Tara replied and moved a lock of hair away from her face.  
  
"No one can find his way back to the place he wants in this forest. Even a fairy couldn't find her way back."  
  
Tara thought about that for a moment. Crystal got lost, while she was supposed to know this place. "You're right." She said finally.  
  
"So, are you coming back?" Amanda asked. Her face expression was serious; she never smiled while she talked to Tara.  
  
"Yeah, sure." Tara said.  
  
They walked together back to the camp.  
  
"By the way, I'm Amanda." Amanda said without looking at Tara.  
  
"I'm Tara."  
  
"Nice to meet you Tara." This time she looked at her. But again, no smile.  
  
Tara smiled, but it was a confused smile. "Nice to meet you, too, Amanda."  
  
"How did you get here? And why?" Amanda asked.  
  
"Crystal offered me to come here. Trolls have killed my parents, and I want to…" Tara paused. They were already near the camp.  
  
"You want to… what?" Amanda asked as they stopped.  
  
"I want revenge." Tara looked at Amanda in the eyes.  
  
Amanda smiled. It was a wicked smile. "You won't be able to do that."  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Trolls would kill you before you're able to notice their presence. Although, they're not that smart. But, they're smarter than you."  
  
Tara didn't reply. She just turned her face and walked to the camp. Amanda followed her with the same smile on her face.  
  
Crystal was awake already, so was the driver. He was preparing the horses for the ride.  
  
"Tara! I was worried about you." Crystal said as she saw Tara coming.  
  
"I'm fine, I went to do some exercising."  
  
"Oh. What for?"  
  
"It's just a routine. I do it every day."  
  
"You run out of home every morning? And your parents don't panic?" David asked.  
  
Tara lowered her head. "No. I used to jog with dad." She turned her face away from them and looked toward the forest. "Excuse me, I need to be alone for a while." She said and walked away.  
  
"Tara!" Crystal was going after her but Amanda stopped her.  
  
"Let her go. She needs to stay alone." Amanda said dryly.  
  
Tara sat near the fire that the driver was trying to keep. He went to bring some woods. Amanda threw the bunnies to the ground. "Dave, do you have a knife or a dagger? I can't find mine."  
  
"It's with me." David handed her the dagger back.  
  
"You stole it!" Amanda said in anger.  
  
"No, I just borrowed it."  
  
"And why didn't I know about that?"  
  
"You were sleeping. I didn't want to wake you up."  
  
"OK, I won't ask you why you needed it. But next time, let me know if you're going to use something that belongs to me." Amanda said as she started to cut the bunnies into pieces to be cooked.  
  
"Alright. But, I needed it to cut a piece of wood."  
  
Amanda looked at him and her eyes flashed yellow for a moment. "Never! Use my dagger on anything! Other than meat." She said angrily.  
  
"What is it with you this morning?" David sat next to her. "Why are you angry? What's wrong?"  
  
Amanda kept doing her work. "Nothing. I'm hungry. That's all."  
  
"You're lying." David said.  
  
"I'm not!"  
  
"Yes you are!"  
  
Amanda held the dagger close to his throat. "I. Am. Not."  
  
"OK, OK." He got up and left her to do the cooking.  
  
"Are you going to help, or I'm supposed to do all the kitchen work here?" Amanda said to Crystal.  
  
"I'll help." Crystal replied and got nearer. "What should I do?"  
  
"Put the meat on sticks."  
  
"Alright." Crystal did as she was told.  
  
David went far from them. He walked through the forest, trying to find Tara. He looked around as he walked, but he couldn't see her anywhere. Suddenly, he heard someone crying. He headed toward the voice. He saw Tara sitting under a tree and crying.  
  
"Tara." He whispered to himself. He didn't know whether go to her, or leave her alone. But finally, he chose the first. He walked to her and knelt near her. He put his hand on her shoulder. Tara raised her head and looked at him.  
  
"Why are you crying?" he asked.  
  
"I'm not crying." She said and wiped her tears with her hand.  
  
"And what is that liquid on your face? Orange juice? Come on, you can tell me. Crystal told us that your parents were murdered by those trolls."  
  
Tara looked to the distance, away from David. "I wish I could meet them again. I swear I'll kill them with my bare hands." She said.  
  
"You won't be able if you're alone. You must let the king know about that. The trolls are not allowed to go to the 10th kingdom."  
  
"And you think that the king will accept to meet me? Come on! There's no one at the head of the country who would listen to a simple person."  
  
"Not my… king." David said. He was going to say his father. But he didn't want the girl to know that he's royalty. He never liked it anyway.  
  
"You king huh?" Tara smiled.  
  
"Yes, my king. He rules the kingdom where I live. So, he's my king."  
  
"OK. Whatever you say."  
  
"Now, are you coming back? You must be hungry."  
  
"I'm not. I just want to get my work finished and go back."  
  
David looked at her with concerned eyes. "You will. But if you don't eat, you won't live to see them again." He said.  
  
"I'm not hungry now." She pulled her legs to her chest and wrapped her arms around them and rested her head on her knees.  
  
"Alright then. I'll sit here by your side, until you get hungry." He sat next to her.  
  
"Yeah, right."  
  
David stared at her. She was sad. Living some kind of a depression. He knew that she wanted revenge, but she won't be able to kill the trolls. At least, not on her own. 


	8. Chapter 8

****

CHAPTER EIGHT

King Wendell kept pacing in his office worried about his son's 'new' adventure. Virginia entered the office and noticed how concerned was Wendell at that moment.

"Wendell? What's wrong?" she asked.

Wendell stopped and looked at her, "I have a bad feeling about their trip Virginia."

"You shouldn't be worried that much. Both of them are grown up."

"It's not that Virginia. I have a strange feeling that something would go wrong. I don't know what."

Virginia looked at him with concerned eyes. Wendell walked to the window and stared out. "Grandmother always told me to think about positive things. But at this moment, I can't." he turned to her. "I think we should go after them."

"Are you nuts?"

Wendell gave Virginia a strange look. "As a matter of fact, I'm a human." He said. Virginia started to laugh.

"Oh Wendell, I didn't mean nuts that we eat." She continued laughing. "I meant you're crazy."

"Your Kingdom has odd words for sure. But that's not the point. I really think that we should go and find them."

"Wendell, they are somewhere in the fourth kingdom. Who knows, maybe they are in another kingdom by now."

"I guess you're right. But with Wolf's nose, we can find them." Wendell replied, and at that moment Wolf entered the room.

"So hee you are my creamy puff!" he gave Virginia a kiss.

"Wolf, Wendell wants us to go after Amanda and David." Virginia said.

"Huff-puff! How're we supposed to find them?" Wolf asked, obviously surprized by the thought.

"With your nose." Wendell said. "I think that you are able to find them."

"I don't think so Wendie." Wolf replied.

"First, I'm not on a mood for a trip right now. Second, they didn't go on foot. I would've found them that way. As for the horses scent, I don't know the scent of the horses they took. So, I can't find them in anyway."

Wendell lowered his head, and then turned to face the winow again. Wolf walked and stood next to him. He turned to Virginia and nodded to her to leave them alone. Virginia understood, and she went out.

"Wendell."

"Yes Wolf?"

"What is bothering you? Tell me the truth."

"I don't know Wolf. I just have this feeling."

"No feeling can be true other than love."

"Even hunger?" Wendell lifted a brow and looked at Wolf.

"That's another subject. Hunger has it's own special place."

"Oh, yes." Wendell said and nodded.

"So? Are you going to tell me?" Wolf asked.

Wendell sat on his office desk, "Wolf. There's something that I haven't told anyone before."

"What is it? You can trust me Wendell." He put his hand on Wendell's shoulder.

"I can't tell you now. I'm sorry Wolf, but I feel that it's not the time to open old wounds."

Wolf looked at Wendell confused. "Alright, if that's what you want. But remember, if you need to talk about it, let me know. And your secret will be safe with me."

"Thank you." Wendell said with a smile.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Tara kept sitting under the tree and David was sitting next to her. He tilted his head back and rested it on the tree.

"Is there anyway I can help?" he asked, finally breaking the silence between them.

"Take me to the trolls." Tara said dryly.

"I will, but not now. We can't go there like this. Alone, without guards or even weapons."

Tara didn't reply. She kept staring to the ground.

"Aren't you hungry yet?" David asked again, trying to change the subject.

"Looks like you're the hungry one. You can go and have breakfast. I'm not hungry. I told you."

"I will wait here with you." He said.

"OK, get up. Let's go back." She said and stood. David also got up and they went back to their camp.

"There you are!" Amanda said as she took a bite of her share of meat. "What took you so long? Playing hide 'n seek?"

"No Amanda. We weren't playing anything." David's voice was serious. He called Amanda by her name only when he was angry by her. This time, he was. So, Amanda didn't reply to him and continued her breakfast.

"Tara, come and have something to eat." Crystal said.

"No thanks. I don't want anything." She replied.

David sat next to Amanda and took a piece of meat and started to eat.

"Tara, is something wrong?" Crystal asked, almost whispering.

"No." she sat next to Crystal. "Where are we going next?"

"I don't know." Crystal replied.

"Why don't you come with us?" David asked.

"What?" Amanda didn't expect this.

"Where to?" Crystal asked.

"We were going to Kissingtown. You can come with us, you are going to see the king anyway. So, it would be better if you came." David said. Amanda stared at him with an opened mouth.

Tara and crystal looked at eachother. "What do you think?" Crystal asked.

"I don't know. But if I have to meet the king to discuss the troll stuff, I guess it's OK." Tara replied.

"We're coming!" Crystal said.

"Just what we need." Amanda murmured under her nose.


	9. Chapter 9

CHAPTER NINE

The carriage left the forest. All four were sitting inside. Amanda closed her eyes and took a nap. David was questioning Crystal about how she ended in New York. Tara looked out of the window staring at everything they passed. She wasn't amazed by the nature or something. She was in deep thoughts. Her mind was at home. She left her parents' bodies for the police to take care of, while she was supposed to do that. After all these years of love that she received from them, she just disappeared from home and didn't even say a last good bye to her parents. That was the most horrible thing she has ever done in her life.

It was almost noon. They passed by a camp that had home-like carriages. Tara didn't give any attention to that, but Amanda growled as she saw the camp.

"What's wrong?" Crystal asked.

"Gypsies." Amanda replied.

"Are we going to stop?"

"Never." Amanda said and took her head out of the window and spoke to the driver. "Get us away from this camp as fast as you can."

"Are they that bad?" Crystal asked.

"More than anyone you know." Amanda replied.

Tara didn't hear the conversation. Her mind wasn't there at all. David didn't talk either. He stared at Tara all the time, feeling sorry for her. The carriage was away from the camp now. Amanda left a relief sigh, when she didn't see the camp anymore.

Suddenly, the carriage stopped. It was bent slightly to the side from its back.

"What on the fairies happened?" Crystal asked.

"I'll check it out." David said and got out of the carriage. The driver was already at the back of the carriage examining the damage that was made. The right back wheel was gone. There weren't any signs of broken parts. The wheel just… vanished!

"Max, what happened?" David asked.

"I don't know Your…"

"Shhhh." David didn't let the driver continue. "Don't say that title again." He whispered. "I don't want them to know."

"But Sir, it's obvious that the carriage is a royal one."

"Yes, but they don't know who were are. They think that we work at the palace. And I want to keep it that way."  
"As you wish Sir. I must say that's a wonderful idea for your safety."

"It's not about safety Max. But never mind. Let's try to fix this." David opened the door of the carriage and asked the girls to get out.

"What is it?" Amanda asked as she got out. "Cripes! How did this happened?" she noticed the 'untouched' damage, as did Crystal. Tara stood there not caring about what was going on.

"I don't know kid. This is weird. There's no sign of anything. I will search for the wheel with Max. You three wait here."

Amanda was sniffing the place where the wheel was supposed to be, but found nothing.

"Strange." She said,

"What is it?" David asked before leaving.

"This wasn't touched by any living soul. No human, no animal."

"OK, until you try to figure this out, we'll search for the wheel."

"If you can't find it in twenty minutes get back here. We'll think of something else."

"Alright." David said and went with Max.

Amanda continued to sniff the carriage for other possible signs of someone who might have been the reason for the carriage wheel to disappear. But found non. She growled in anger.

"Do you think they'll find the wheel?" Crystal asked.

"I'm not sure." Amanda replied.

"This wasn't done by someone's hand." Tara said finally.

"What do you mean?" Crystal asked.

"How do you know?" Amanda asked sharply.

"I have the feeling that this wasn't done by hand. It's something else." Tara replied.

Amanda sniffed the air. "This doesn't smell good." She said and looked around.

"Now what?" Crystal asked.

"Gypsies." Tara said.

Amanda's eyes flashed yellow and she growled. She looked around but couldn't see anyone. The smell of the gypsies was around, but they weren't close.

David and Max searched the forest for the wheel, but an arrow that hit a tree right in front of David stopped them.

"Suck an elf!" David cursed. "Where did that come from?" he looked around and saw five figures approaching them. Max took his sword in hand and stood in front of David as to defend him.

"Stop where you are and identify yourself." Max called.

The five men didn't stop, they got closer and the two men saw that they were gypsies.

"Well, well. What do we have here?" One of the gypsies said. He was the tallest of the five, with red curly hair that was pulled back in a ponytail. He had dark tanned skin and green eyes.

"Looks like the royal staff has lost something in our territory." The other said. He was shorter than the first. His hair was black, straight and long. It was also pulled back in a ponytail. He had white skin and hazel eyes. His muscles appeared under his shirt that was very tight on him.

The third had a dagger in his hand. He was as tall as the second. He had the same body type as the second gypsy; his skin was also tanned, but not dark as the first. He had brown eyes. His hair was shoulder length, dark brown. And, for David's amazement he had a tail. "What are you doing here?" he asked.

David stepped forward and stood next to Max. "Our carriage has lost its wheel and we were searching for it."

The five men exchanged a look and started to laugh loudly. The first gypsy man talked, "And that gave you the permission to step in our forest?"

"This isn't YOUR forest." Max said angrily.

"Oh really? Then whom does it belong?" The gypsy asked in a sarcastic way.

"To the ruler of the 4th kingdom. His Majesty King Wendell White." David replied.

"Oh, I see. And does he live here?" the gypsy replied in the same sarcastic tone.

"Behave yourself gypsy!" Max said. "You're speaking to His Highness Prince David White."

"What a surprise." The fourth gypsy talked this time. He was the shortest among them. He had blond curly hair that was short. He had a white skin that was slightly tanned and blue eyes. He held a crossbow in his hand. He turned to his friends, "Should we invite them to our camp? As prisoners?"

"Mother would be happy to see them." The fifth said. He was taller than the fourth gypsy, as thin as he was. He had red hair that was straight and short. His skin was also tanned, and he had hazel eyes. "Tim, why don't you and Sam show our royal guests the way to the camp. While I, Chris and Leo go and invite the ladies." He asked the second gypsy.

"With pleasure." Tim replied.

"Oh and remember to tie them a little bit." He added. "We don't want them get lost."

Tim had an evil grin on his face. "Now, are you going to give me that silly sword you have in your hand? Or should I cut your arm from your shoulder instead?" he asked Max.

Max looked at David, who nodded in agreement. Max threw the sword on the ground. "Good choice." Tim said. He took a rope that was hanging from his pants and Sam did the same. They tied David's and Max's hands to the back, and took them to the camp.

"That was easy to do." Chris said.

"And it would be much more easier with the ladies." Lucas said and the three laughed. "Now let's go."

The girls sat near the carriage waiting for David and Max to get back. Amanda was getting nervous. "It's been an hour and they're not back yet." She stood and started sniff the air. "I can't smell them getting closer." Suddenly her eyes flashed yellow. She turned to Tara and Crystal, "Get up." She demanded.

"What is it?" Crystal asked.

"Gypsies are coming. We should hide."

"But where?"

Amanda looked around but it was late to move now. Three men stood in front of them. Amanda's eyes flashed yellow again, and she growled. Leo stared at her amazed. How couldn't he smell a half-wolf around? Amanda thought the same, but at that moment she didn't care. She was in danger and she was getting ready to defend herself and the other girls too.

"Hello." Lucas said and bowed, almost politely and had a smile on his face.

Amanda didn't trust him. She didn't trust anyone of them. "What do you want?" she asked dryly.

"You are in our territory. So, we thought about inviting you to our modest camp." Lucas replied.

Tara and Crystal stood behind Amanda, scared of what would happen if they didn't go.

"We're not interested, thank you." Amanda said. "Now, leave us and go before I rip your throats out." He eyes were still yellow.

"Watch your words wolf!" Leo said, his eyes flashed yellow as well.

"Take it easy my friend." Lucas put his hand on Leo's shoulder. "We are not here to cause trouble to the ladies. We only wanted to invite them to have a cup of tea with my mother. But if they don't want to, that's their problem."

Amanda calmed after she heard that. Her eyes were back to normal. Lucas smiled. "Please let us give you a small present that mother sent with us." He said.

Amanda looked at the girls, and looked at Lucas again. "We don't need any presents."

"Amanda, couldn't we just… run?" Crystal said, but Amanda didn't reply. Her eyes were focused on the gypsies.

"We can't take it back. Mother will be upset. You can take it, and throw it away. But, you have to take it."

Amanda thought about that for a moment. "OK, but I will throw it away." She said.

Lucas's smile got wider. He turned to Chris and winked. Chris knew what that meant.

"May I step closer to give you the present?" Chris asked.

"OK." Amanda replied.

Chris took a small pouch out of his pocket and went forward, closer to the girls. He opened the pouch and emptied it in his gloved hand.

Amanda saw the pink dust. "Cripes! RUN!" she shouted and before the three of them could run, Chris threw the troll dust on them. The three girls dropped on the ground… sleeping.

"Good work Chris!" Leo said.

Chris had a big smile on his face. "I'll tell you, this was harder than those men. This wolf girl is smart." He said.

"It may seem so." Lucas said. Let's just tie them up and carry them to the camp."

"Alright." Chris said. They all had ropes hanging from their pants. They tied the hands of the girls and Leo took a piece of a cloth and tied Amanda's mouth.

"Look at this one!" Lucas said. "She's a fairy!"

"Suck an elf! What're we going to do now?" Chris said. "The queen won't like it."

"Let's just go back now. We'll tell her what happened, and I'm sure she'll understand." Leo said.

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Just a note so you don't get confused. Here are the names of the five gypsy guys.

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1st: Christopher (Chris)

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2nd: Timothy (Tim)

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3rd: Leo (he's a half-wolf)

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4th: Samuel (Sam)

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5th: Lucas (he's the gypsy prince)

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Now that you read this, please submit a review. Thanks!


	10. Chapter 10

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CHAPTER TEN

Amanda opened her eyes and looked around. She saw Tara and Crystal sleeping next to her, their hands tied. They were in a tent that was closed from three sides and one side led to the center of the camp.

Amanda tried to call for help, but failed. She decided to put her feet into action. She kicked Tara, as she was closer to her. Tara immediately woke up and turned around.

"Amanda! What happened?" she whispered. Amanda motioned to help her get rid of the cloth on her mouth. Tara managed to slide her legs through her arms, and her hands were in front of her now. She took the cloth off Amanda's mouth.

"Thanks." Amanda whispered.

"It's nothing. How are we supposed to get out of here?" Tara asked, and started to release Amanda's hands. When she was done, Amanda released Tara's hands.

"I don't know. I don't even see David or max around here." Amanda kept looking around. She could smell them, but couldn't see them.

Tara turned to Crystal, who was still sleeping. "Crystal, wake up."

Crystal opened her eyes. "What happened? Oh, my back hurts!"

"That's because you've been lying on your back for God knows how much time! And your hands are tied up. Let me help." Tara helped Crystal to sit and then she released her hands.

"Where are the guys?" Crystal asked.

"That's what I'm trying to figure out." Amanda replied and sniffed the air.

"The camp is silent." Tara said.

"And that's making me nervous." Amanda said with a growl. "There's no one close, let's get out."

They went out of the tent. Amanda was leading the way. She walked slowly, making sure that they won't be noticed by anyone. The passed a few carriages and then Amanda felt a scent.

"They're close." She said.

"Are they alone?" Crystal asked.

"No. There are many gypsies with them. But we have to see them." Amanda replied and they continued to walk.

"Looks like you're awake already." Leo blocked their way.

Amanda growled. "Get out of my way wolf."

"You're a wolf as much as I am. So, why are you acting like you're a full blooded human?" Leo replied in a sarcastic tone.

"Where's David?" Amanda asked, ignoring Leo's question.

"With the queen. They're having a royal conversation."

Amanda walked closer to him and grabbed his shirt collar. "If you mentioned in front of these girls that he is the prince, I will burn your dirty tail after cutting it into pieces by my bare hands." She whispered to him.

Leo grabbed Amanda's hand and pulled it away from his shirt. "I'll do whatever I want, and no one can stop me." His face was almost an inch away from hers. Amanda growled and walked back to the girls.

"I hate them!" she said with a growl.

"Amanda calm down. We don't know what will they do to us." Tara said.

"You want to see your friends?" Leo asked.

"Yes." Tara replied.

"Follow me."

Leo took them to the place where David and Max were.

"Mama, the girls are awake!" Leo said.

"What a nice surprise." The gypsy queen replied.

"Mama? He's her son?" Crystal asked.

"Maybe adopted son. They don't smell like each other." Amanda replied.

The girls sat in front of the gypsy queen near a small table. After a moment David and Max came with Lucas. As soon as Amanda saw David she jumped into his arms.

"Dave! Oh my God, I thought I lost you."

"I'm fine kid. Everything is fine. We'll get out of here." He replied as he stroke her hair.

"What a sweet scene." The gypsy queen said. "Have a seat please."

Amanda and David sat next to each other. She was holding his hand. Something in her was changed at this moment. She felt helpless. She was scared of something that she didn't know.

"What are you going to do to us?" Crystal asked.

"Nothing that would cause harm my dear." The queen replied. "I want to read your future child." She turned to Tara.

"Why me?" Tara asked.

"Because I see sorrow in your eyes. Come, let's see what would my crystal ball say."

Tara looked at Crystal and then she got closer to the queen. She sat on a chair that was right in front of her. The queen put her hands on the ball and murmured some words that only the crystal ball could understand. Then, she looked at it as she was watching some kind of story being told in pictures. Then she looked at Tara, who didn't seem to understand what was going on.

"You have come from a far place. You have lost so much, but you will reach your goal. But, it will cost you so much. As I see death coming your way. Although you have a protector, but, be careful."

"Death?" Tara was surprised. "But my parents are dead already."

"The crystal doesn't show persons. I can't say who is death coming for."

"Oh, OK. Thanks." Tara said and got up. Crystal came and sat in her place.

"What does the future has for me?" she asked.

The queen put her hands on the crystal again and started to say different words now. She looked into it and pulled back horrified.

"What is it?" Crystal asked, noticing the queen's pale face.

"All black. I don't see anything. The crystal shows only black." She looked at Crystal. "You have committed a crime and you shall be punished."

"Are you kidding? I have never committed a crime in my life! I don't believe what you're saying. What does a glass know anyway?" she got up and walked away. Tara looked at her and wondered what has the queen said that made her so angry. She was sitting a little bit far from them and that's why she couldn't hear the conversation. Lucas came and sat next to her.

"What's your name?" he asked.

"Tara."

"Nice name. I'm Lucas."

"I can't say it's nice to meet you. As it wasn't nice at all."

"I know. I'm sorry. We had to bring you here. And we didn't know how."

"You could've just asked instead of throwing some dirty pink dust. If you ever use that on me again, you'll be able to see your funeral from the sky."

"Hey, hey. Calm down. First, I did ask. And second, you saw how that wolf girl acted. We had no choice. And why does the troll dust bother you that much?"

Tara looked away. A tear came down on her cheek as she remembered the scene at her house. "The trolls used it on my parents before… killing them."

"Oh. I'm sorry. I didn't know." He handed her a napkin. "Here, use this. It's clean."

Tara took the napkin and wiped her eyes. "Thanks."

The queen called Amanda and David. They sat in front of her together. Amanda was still holding David's hand.

"Calm down child. Something has changed inside of you. Although I cannot say what it is, but you are scared to admit it." The queen spoke to Amanda.

"What do you mean? Nothing has changed except for our trip plans." Amanda replied.

"I am not speaking about your trip my dear. This has something to do with your heart. Only you should know what am I talking about." Then she turned to David. "You have been having some difficulties with someone that is close to your heart. He doesn't seem to trust you. But when you see him again, everything will change."

"To the better?" David asked.

"Yes. You have a bright future." She put a cloth on the crystal. "I don't want to say more. When someone has a bright future, it isn't allowed to continue."

"Why?" David asked.

"Because you already have everything in white. Anything you do is going to succeed. So there's no need to tell anything else."

"I understand."

"And how is your father doing now?"

"You know him?"

"Who doesn't? He's the ruler of this kingdom."

"No, I mean do you know him in person."

"We met twice." A big smile went on the queen's old face.

"Really? Well, he's doing fine in turning my life into hell."

"Everything will change my son."

"But how do you know him?" David asked.

"You were brought into this life by these hands." She showed her hands.

David's eyes opened wide. "Really? It's a pleasure to meet you!" he got up and hugged the queen.

"When I saw your carriage going across the forest, I couldn't resist myself from bringing you here."

"By using troll dust?" Amanda asked.

"My son didn't think in another way I guess. I only feel sorry for you to have that fairy with you on your trip."

"Why?"

"She doesn't seem good."

"She haven't caused any trouble to us." David said.

"I hope that she wouldn't cause any."

"May I ask you a favor?"

"Of course."

"I don't want for Tara and Crystal to know that I am the king's son. They think I just work in the palace, as well as Amanda. So, can you keep it a secret from them?"

"Sure. But why aren't you telling them the truth?"

"I just don't want them to know. I am sick of being treated as royalty. I never had friends. I guess this is a chance."

"Alright my dear. They will never know by me." The queen smiled.

"By the way, you said that you met my father twice. When was the second one?"

"It was three months before your birth." She looked at Amanda and smiled.

"You delivered her too?" David asked.

"I did. Are your parents here?" she turned to Amanda.

"Yeah. They have settled here for a few years now. I'm the only one going to the 10th kingdom and coming back here."

"And how are they? Do you have any brothers or sisters?"

"They're fine. And I'm the only child."

Crystal walked between the carriages. She thought about what the queen has just told her. She was going to die. She knew that. A fairy wasn't allowed to use a gypsy method of telling the future. And once they knew their future by a gypsy, it meant death to them.

"But I didn't mean to know everything." She said to herself. "I just hope I can live long enough to get home. I wouldn't like to be dead in another kingdom." She sat near the tent where she and the others woke up a couple of hours ago. Knowing about her own death scared her. She had a mission to accomplish. She has to do it as soon as possible.


	11. Chapter 11

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CHAPTER ELEVEN

"Wolf! We have to find them!" Wendell said angrily.

"Wendie, they'll be fine." Wolf replied, trying to calm him.

"Amanda said that they'll be gone for a couple of days, and it's been three days now!"

"Maybe they are on their way back." Virginia added.

"She's right Wendell. You don't know where they are now, so you can't find them."

"What about your smelling abilities Wolf?" Wendell asked. "You always say that wolves have a strong smelling instinct."

"They do. But, if we go after them now, we will come back after the same amount of days and we'll find them here. So, it's better to wait for them."

"Wendell, he's right. Besides, Amanda and David can take care of each other. So, don't worry." Virginia said and put a hand on Wendell's shoulder.

Wendell put his hand on hers. "I'm not sure about this. But I'll do as you say this time again. But after two days, we are going after them."

"Deal!" Wolf said.

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Amanda woke up feeling extremely hungry. She got out of the wagon where she, Tara and Crystal spent the night and ran into the forest. She wanted to eat something fresh. A bunny, or a deer if she could catch one. She caught a scent. She stopped and sniffed the air, then followed the scent. A deer was eating grass. It was all alone. Having its breakfast peacefully. But Amanda couldn't let the chance go away. So, she got closer slowly, trying her best not to scare the animal and then, she jumped on its back and ripped its throat with her knife. The deer fell on her breathless and bleeding.

"Cripes!" Amanda said, as she was almost out of breath herself. She pushed the animal away and freed herself from its weight.

"Stupid animal." She said to the dead deer. "But you sure look tasty." She smiled and started to have her own breakfast.

She caught another scent now that made her growl loudly. Another wolf was around. She was going to protect her hunt. She looked around and didn't see anyone, but she kept growling between bites.

"Good morning!"

Amanda jumped upon hearing the voice. She turned back to see Leo standing behind her with a wolfish grin on his face.

"Don't do that again wolf. And go away." She said and continued to eat.

"Don't do what? Greet you in the morning? Or you were scared and want me not to scare you anymore?"

"Leave me alone."

"I won't. I'm hungry. Will you let me join you? You can't eat that all alone."

"Yes I can."

"You can't."

Amanda turned to look at him sharply, and her eyes flashed yellow. "Yes. I. Can." She said as anger started to take control.

Leo saw her face. She was so beautiful while angry. He wanted to continue the show, but he thought that she might get hurt. "Alright, you can. I think I'll go and hunt something else. You'll find me near the lake if you need me. Oh, and my name is Leo, not wolf."

Amanda didn't reply. She turned back to the deer, or at least what was left from it, as Amanda managed to eat its legs already. Leo went on his own way trying to find some breakfast.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

At the camp Tara and Crystal were waiting for breakfast. Soon, David and Max joined them.

"Where's Amanda?" David asked.

"We don't know. She wasn't here when we woke up." Tara replied.

David thought for a moment. "She's in the forest. Hunting probably."

"I guess so." Tara said.

"Are we going to leave this place in the near future?" Crystal asked.

"Yes. Today at noon. We have to get to Kissingtown as soon as we can." David said and turned to Max. "Max, is the carriage ready?"

"Yes, Your…" He stopped as he saw David's look. "Yes sir." He said instead.

"That's good. So, we'll leave as soon as Amanda comes back." David said and they all joined the breakfast table.

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The trolls were at their palace. They were confused about the mirror disappearing from its place where they left it.

"What are we supposed to do now?" Bluebell asked.

"I don't know." Blabberwort replied.

"That fairy tricked us! I'll kill her when I see her!" Burly said, waving his dagger in front of his siblings.

"What about the master? What are we going to tell him?" Bluebell asked again.

"Suck an elf! I forgot about him." Burly said.

"But where is the mirror?" Blabberwort asked. "It wasn't where we left it."

"She did it! She's back here!" Burly stood from his seat. "We have to find them!"

"But what about the master?" Bluebell asked again. "He will kill us if he knew about the mirror."

"Not to mention being tricked by the fairy." Blabberwort added.

"Oh, suck an elf you two! We can do this without telling the master. He doesn't need to know."

They sat there talking and arguing not even noticing that there was someone watching them through the mirror that was on the wall.

A man with a white cloak and black hair watched them silently through the spying mirror that he owned.

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OK, I know this was short. But, I hope to get enough reviews to keep the excitement to write more. So, please review.


	12. Chapter 12

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A/N: I've edited this chapter. You noticed that it was very short, so I decided to write more in it. I hope you like it. Please don't forget to review:) Oh, and thanks to everyone who reviewed so far. Thank you for your kind words:)

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CHAPTER TWELVE

"You will pay for what you did filthy animals." The man in the white cloak said. "That fairy betrayed me. And she's going to get her share of punishment when the time comes."

He turned to another mirror that was big and old. "My dearest mirror. Will you find the Crystal fairy for me and make her suffer?" The mirror cracked in respond. It showed Crystal sitting near a table and eating.

"Give her a headache that will cause her pain beyond limits." The man said with a calm, but an evil voice.

Tara was having breakfast and talking to David. "So, what's it look like to work at a royal palace?"

"Boring." David replied.

"Really? I thought it would be fun to see the king everyday. And to live in a palace would mean to be surrounded with important people who would help you when you need them."

"But it gets boring sooner than you expect."

Suddenly Crystal held her head with both of her hands and screamed.

"Crystal are you OK?" Tara asked.

"My head! It's killing me!" Crystal was screaming and crying on the floor. "HELP ME! It hurts!" She kept squeezing her head with her hands hoping to ease the pain, but that didn't work.

"Your Majesty help her please." David called the gypsy queen.

"Chris, take her to my wagon." The queen ordered.

Chris carried Crystal who was crying in pain to the queen's wagon. The queen followed them. "Stay here and continue your breakfast. I need to work alone." She said, almost as an order and she continued her way to her wagon.

"Is she going to be fine?" Tara asked.

"I don't know." David replied. "Where is Amanda?!" he asked angrily. "She's never here when she's needed!"

Tara stared at David in amazement. '_When she's needed?_' she thought. '_And I thought they were some kind of relatives._' She sat back in her place and continued to eat.

Amanda walked through the forest until she reached the lake. She didn't see Leo there. "Looks like he's gone already." She said to herself, and turned to go back to the camp.

Leo reached the surface of the water. He saw Amanda leaving. "She was here? Wow! I didn't expect that. Looks like the Great Spirit is good with me today." His smile got wider, and he swam to the shore. He got dressed and followed Amanda's scent.

Crystal kept crying in pain, while the gypsy queen was working on a healing potion.

"I can't stand this pain! Help me please!" she said.

"I am working on the potion dear. Here, drink this. It will take the pain away."

Crystal drank the yellow liquid and closed her eyes. "This was horrible."

"Medicine should be horrible dear."

After a few minutes Crystal's headache passed. She was already asleep in the queen's wagon. The gypsy queen went out and searched for David. He was talking with Lucas.

"David?" the queen called.

"Yes, your majesty?" David turned to her. "Excuse me Lucas."

"Sure." Lucas replied and left them.

David went toward the queen. "How is she now?"

"She's sleeping. I gave her a healing potion."

"Thank you so much. But what was the reason for that headache?"

"David, do you remember when I told you I don't trust her?"

"Yes."

"Well, she has been cursed. That's where the pain came from. And believe me, I know curses when I see them."

"Suck an elf! But who did it?"

"I don't know. I will ask my crystal ball to tell me, but I'll do that after Crystal wakes up, so I would be alone in my wagon. I don't want to take my crystal ball out."

"Alright. And after that we should be leaving. I think that we won't make it to Kissingtown and get back to the palace in time. Amanda's birthday surprise for her mother is ruined."

"No it's not. When's her birthday?" the queen asked with a smile.

"Tomorrow."

"Alright, when Amanda comes back, come to my wagon. You'll see what I have for you two."

"Alright. I will go to find her now."

"Be careful." The queen said as David headed to the forest.

He just walked through the forest hoping that Amanda would find him by his scent, because he wasn't able to smell her. "I wish I was a half-wolf. At least, I could find her using my nose." He said to himself.

After a half an hour of useless walking, David stopped and took a deep breath. "Damn this girl! I can't find her anywhere!"

"You can't find who?"

David jumped at the voice and turned to see her standing right behind him. "Don't you ever do that again!" he put his hand on his heart. "You almost killed me. Where have you been?"

"Around here." Amanda replied. "Missed me?"

"It's not the best time to play games Amanda. Crystal is cursed."

"WHAT?!" Amanda yelled, "What do you mean she's cursed?"

"She had a headache at breakfast, and the queen helped her. She told me that Crystal has been cursed."

"Oh cripes! This is bad." Amanda scratched her temple nervously and started to walk back and forth.

"Hey kid, calm down. Please." David rushed to her and took her in his arms. "Everything will be fine."

Amanda raised her head to look into his eyes. "Dave, I have a bad feeling about this."

"Nothing will happen to us. Besides, the queen told me that she has something to show us both. It concerns your mother's birthday."

"Shit! I totally forgot about it! It's tomorrow!!!"

"I told her the same. She said that everything would be fine. Now, let's go and see her." David kissed her forehead and they both returned to the camp, Amanda, not letting go of David's hand. And all the way back to the camp, he kept calming her. She was nervous about the fact that Crystal has been cursed. It meant only one thing. An evil soul was after them.


	13. Chapter 13

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CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Tara finished her breakfast and headed to her tent. She packed her bag and went back to the center of the camp. She sat there alone waiting for someone to come and tell her that they were leaving. It seemed that everyone was busy with something. She looked around and her mind took her back home, where she used to live happily with her parents.

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She was walking back home from work. She was tired but there was something bothering her. Something was wrong. She started to walk faster, almost running. When she reached her building she ran to the elevator and pushed the button. After a few moments she threw herself inside and pushed button number 8. She knew there was something horrible going on. Her heart was pacing. The elevator reached the 8th floor. Tara got out and ran to her apartment. The door was opened and the floor was covered in pink.

"Mom? Dad?" she called and hurried to the kitchen. A pool of blood was covering the kitchen and her parents on the floor. "NO!"

Tara woke up with a scream. She was shaking and crying. "That's not true! It didn't happen!"

"Tara, are you alright?" Amanda called and ran to her. David followed quickly.

"What's wrong?" David asked.

"It's not true. They're alive. They're back home waiting for me." Tara kept talking to herself without noticing anyone around. She held her head with her hands and shook herself back and forth.

"Tara?" Amanda put her hand on Tara's shoulder. But Tara couldn't feel her.

"I want my mom." Tara said looking frightened. "I want to see my parents." She turned to look to the forest, and then she looked to Amanda. "They're there. I came from there. I'm going back." She got on her feet.

"Tara wait!" David called after her but he was too late. She ran into the forest.

"Dave let's follow her!" Amanda said and they ran after Tara.

"What's wrong with her?" David asked.

"I don't know. Maybe she just had a bad dream." Amanda stood and looked around. "Cripes! She vanished!" she sniffed the air. "I can't find her scent."

David stood next to her, panting. "How.. are.. we.. supposed.. to find her?"

"I don't know. Listen, you go back to the camp and tell them what happened. I'll keep searching for her. I can find my way back."

"Alright. Be careful." David said and ran back to the camp.

Amanda kept sniffing the air and walked. She couldn't find Tara's scent. "Maybe it's the wind. It's not letting me catch her scent."

"Need help?" Leo jumped in front of her from nowhere.

"Don't you ever do that again!" Amanda said and her eyes flashed yellow.

"Sorry. But, whose scent are you trying to catch?" Leo asked.

"Tara. She ran away."

"Why?"

"I don't really know. She was sleeping and suddenly she jumps awake and screams and cries, then she ran to the forest. And I can't smell her!" The last sentence was a shout of anger that escaped Amanda.

"Hey, calm down. I'll help you." Leo said.

"Thanks. Two noses are better than one." Amanda said with a smile.

"OK, I'll go north, you go south." Leo said indicating to the directions that they were supposed to go.

"No, no, no. We're going together. What if you found her first? She wouldn't trust you."

Leo looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "Why shouldn't she trust me? Because I'm a half-wolf?"

"Oh no. I didn't mean that. She wouldn't trust you, because you're a guy. That's all."

"Whatever! Let's go before she hurts herself." He said and they started to search. "Just keep your voice down. It's dangerous on this part."

"What?!" Amanda shouted but it came out as a whisper. "Why didn't you tell me?!"

"You didn't ask." Leo replied simply.

"I just can't understand you!" she looked around for a familiar face, but Tara was nowhere to be found.

"How come we can't smell her?" Leo asked after two hours of searching.

"I don't know." Amanda said. "Do you think we lost her? I mean… forever?"

"No, no. I don't think so."

Amanda stood there and tears filled her eyes. "I don't really know that girl, but I'm here crying because I CAN'T FIND HER ANYWHERE!"

Leo took her in his arms. "Hey, we'll find her. This forest is big, but also it's so small. She can be anywhere near us. So, don't worry."

Amanda just stood there in his arms and cried. "I shouldn't have let her go. I was so stupid not to hold her back. It's my fault!"

"No it's not. And stop crying. You won't do any good by that." He softened his voice and continued, "I don't like to see you crying."

Amanda looked into his eyes. They were glittering. She knew what that meant and she pulled away from him. She wiped her eyes with her hands. "Let's continue." She said and ran further into the forest.

It was noon. The sun was shining in the sky, but as deepest they went, darker it became. Little rays of light were visible through the trees. Amanda and Leo kept searching. But there was no sign of life at that part of the forest.

"I think we should go back to the camp." Leo said.

"Maybe you're right." Amanda said. "She's gone. We won't find her anymore."

"The queen can find her!" Leo said in excitement. "She can use her crystal ball."

"Huff-puff! Why didn't we think about that before! Let's go!"

They ran back to the camp. They reached it in much less time. They hurried to the queen's wagon and burst in.

"Didn't I teach you to knock child?" the queen said without looking at Leo.

"Sorry Your Majesty. I didn't mean to." He replied.

David was sitting opposite of her and staring into the crystal ball. "Did you find her?" he asked Amanda as soon as he saw her entering.

"No." Amanda replied.

"The ball isn't showing anything." The queen said.

"We went deep into the forest. We couldn't smell her. She just… vanished!" Amanda said.

"Calm down Amanda. The queen will find her." Leo said.

"It's all my fault." Amanda said.

David got up and hugged her. "It wasn't your fault and it wasn't anybody's fault. Something went wrong. She couldn't just disappear on her own. She's not a witch, and she's not a fairy or an elf."

"I guess you're right." Amanda said with a sigh of relief. Leo looked at her with the corner of his eye, and tried hard not to growl at David.

"Come on kid, let's see what the queen has to say now." David said and they sat in front of the queen.

"This is weird. It never happened before." The queen said while looking at the ball that Amanda thought it just contained some white smoke in it. "The ball shows all the living creatures whom I want to see. But… This could mean only one thing." She waved her hand over the ball and the white smoke disappeared. "She is in a place where everyone is invisible."

"Where can that be?" Amanda asked.

"I have no idea." David replied.

The queen didn't show them if she knew about the place. She sat there staring at the little window of her wagon. "Time will tell. Time will tell." She said in a low and a calm voice.

Amanda and David looked at each other. They didn't know what to think. They didn't have any clue about what to do.

"I almost forgot my dears." The queen said as her smiled returned to her face. "Tomorrow is your mother's birthday isn't it dear?"

"Yes." Amanda replied. "But we won't make it in time."

"Oh don't worry about that. You'll be there in time. And you'll be able to buy her a present too."

Amanda looked at her with a hope. "How?"

The queen got up and walked to the end of her wagon. A small wardrobe was put there and she opened it and took a little box out of it. She put it on the table and opened it. There were many little pouches there, all in a different color. No pouch matched the other. She took out a blue one.

"Take this." She handed the pouch to David. "That's travelling dust. You throw it in the air and stand under it. As soon as it touches you, you should say the name of the destination you want. But, it must be a place with solid ground. You can go to Kissingtown, and after you do your shopping, you can go back to your father's palace."

At the mention of the word palace Crystal opened her eyes. She was still sleeping all that time. But she didn't show them that she was awake. '_His father's palace? Is he a prince? The son of King Wendell?_' A smiled formed on her lips and she closed her eyes again. She was listening to the whole conversation now. And no one would stop her from listening. They forgot that she was there.

"Alright. I think we should wait until Crystal wakes up. We can't leave her here all alone." Amanda said.

"You're right." David said.

Crystal opened her eyes again and yawned. She looked around her with an expression of a shock on her face. "What happened?" she asked and sat up.

"You had this terrible headache and we brought you here." Amanda said and sat next to her. "How do you feel now?"

"I'm fine." Crystal looked around. "Where's Tara?"

Amanda looked to David and he shrugged. They didn't know how to tell Crystal that her friend disappeared.

"Where is she?" Crystal asked again.

"She… she disappeared." Amanda said. "Now, don't worry." She added quickly as she saw the frightened look on Crystal's face. "We're going to find her. I promise."


	14. Chapter 14

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A/N: Thanks to **tajb** and **Miss Piratess** for the reviews :)

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CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Amanda walked through the streets of Kissingtown looking at the various shops while David and Crystal followed her silently. It has been three hours since they came here from the gypsy camp by travelling dust. Amanda wanted to buy a present for her mother's birthday, but she wasn't sure what did she want.

"Come on kid! Why can't you decide what you want?" David asked.

"Because I want it to be something special." Amanda stopped and turned to look at David. "And how many times I told not to call me kid?"

David rolled his eyes and walked. "I will call you what I want." He muttered.

"Uh.. Amanda, why don't you buy her a portrait?" Crystal asked.

"She doesn't like them."

"How about a necklace? Or a bracelet?"

"She has so many of them that she doesn't wear any jewelry anymore."

"Oh." Crystal thought for a moment and followed Amanda as she kept looking at the shops.

Suddenly, Amanda stopped as the idea hit her. "Yes!"

"What?" David turned to her.

"I know what present to give her!"

"Finally!" David said, his arms stretched and his face looking at the sky. "Thank you! Thank you!"

Amanda looked at David with a raised eyebrow. "Huff-puff!" she said and walked.

"Wait! You didn't tell me what are you going to buy!" he followed.

"Nothing."

"What? You just said that you know what to give her!"

"I know. I'm not buying anything." Amanda stopped and looked at a pink building. "There."

"The Madly In Love hotel?" David asked, looking at the same building.

"I'm going to reserve a room for her and dad." Amanda said proudly. "Let them have a second honeymoon."

David smiled. "Good idea. Can I have an input in the present too?"

"Of course you can." Amanda smiled at him. "Let's get in."

"Guys, you go ahead, I'll just take a walk around." Crystal said.

"Okay, make sure you don't get lost." Amanda said and she walked into the hotel with David.

"Trust me, I won't." Crystal said with a smirk and headed to the center of the town. A sudden headache made her stop. "Suck an elf! I… need… a mirror!"

She held her head with both of her hands and ran to the nearest shop to find a mirror. As she entered the shopkeeper stared at her. Crystal put her hands down and smiled.

"Uh.. quite hot outside." She said. "It gives me a headache."

"Indeed. It's been so hot in the last few days." The shopkeeper said. "How can I help you?"

"I was looking for a mirror."

"We have a fine collection of mirrors. Come this way." He led her to the far end of the shop and showed her rows of shelves, which were covered by white satin. Crystal looked at the different types of mirrors that were on the shelves.

"Can I think about which one I want to choose for a couple of minutes?" she asked him, faking a sweet smile.

"Of course you can Miss." The shopkeeper said. "I'll leave you alone so you can choose."

"Thank you."

As soon as the shopkeeper left Crystal took one mirror and looked at it. It didn't show her reflection though. It was the man with the white cloak. His black hair was pulled back and his sharp pointed ears were showing.

"Father!" she exclaimed in a whisper. "That hurts you know!"

"You have failed your task Crystal. I am disappointed."

"No! I didn't fail! She disappeared!"

The man was surprised. He raised an eyebrow. "Disappeared?"

"She ran out of the gypsy camp where we were staying and then no one can find her. Even the half-breeds couldn't smell her anywhere. She just… vanished!" Crystal whispered and looked at the direction of the shopkeeper, who looked at her and smiled. She forced a smile back.

"That can mean only one thing. Ruby knows about her."

"Who's Ruby?" Crystal asked.

"You do not need to know child. You must find Emerald and bring her to me."

"I will. Just keep those trolls out of my way please. They stink!"

The man smirked. "Alright, they won't be disturbing you anymore. And I'd suggest that you buy this mirror and keep it with you. It can be useful."

Crystal nodded with a smile. "I'll see you soon father."

"Make me proud of you my child." The man said and the mirror showed Crystal's own reflection. She held it tightly and walked to the counter.

"I'll take this." She said.

"Very well." The shopkeeper said. "A fine choice Miss. This is a magical mirror."

"Really?" Crystal remembered her father's words.

"It would show the true identity of the person in front of you. Just hold the mirror in front of you and turn to the side of that person. Instead of your reflection you'll see what that person really is."

"How interesting." Crystal said, a grin forming on her face. She can discover the identity of David and Amanda with this mirror. "But what if it falls into the wrong hands?"

"See this gem?" the shopkeeper pointed at a red gem at the base of the handle and Crystal nodded. "You must turn this around to activate the mirror. No one should know about this except for you."

"I see." Crystal said, her smile widening. "How much do I owe you?"

"Five hundred Wendells."

"Alright. There you go." Crystal took out a small pouch and gave it to the shopkeeper. "Five hundred Wendells. You may count them."

"No need. I trust you Miss." The shopkeeper said.

"Thank you Sir." Crystal took the mirror and put it in a pocket. "Good bye."

"Have a nice day Miss."

Crystal left the shop and headed back to the Madly In Love hotel where she knew she can find David and Amanda. She walked in and looked around. She saw David and Amanda near the reception table talking about something.

"Hey guys, aren't you finished yet?" she asked.

"Not yet. Amanda here wants to reserve a deluxe room but I'm suggesting the Royal suit. And she doesn't want it."

"Dave, it's too expensive!" Amanda protested.

"I said I can handle it. Nothing is expensive for your mother, kid!"

Amanda growled. "Alright, Royal suit it is."

"Good, is a week enough?"

"Yeah."

"Alright." David turned to the receptionist and continued the reservation process.

"Where did you go?" Amanda turned to Crystal.

"I just walked around." Crystal replied.

"Done." David said. "Royal suit, three times food, unlimited entrance to the swimming pool, and a free tour around Kissingtown."

"Wonderful." Amanda said. "Mom's gonna love it."

"I hope so." David smiled. "Now, we should go to the…" he looked at Crystal. "Crystal, where do you live?"

"I have no home." She said. "I used to live in the Seventh Kingdom, but I left it a few years ago. I've been living in the forests all these years."

"Oh, well… I guess you can come with us?" David looked at Amanda.

"Er… Yeah, why not?" she looked back to David. "They wouldn't mind… I guess."

"Yeah, guess so." He turned to Crystal. "Would you like to come with us?"

Crystal made a face as though she was considering the offer. "Yes." She said finally with a smile. "I'll come."


End file.
